Which statement best describes the differences among GIS, GPS, and remote sensing in geographic analysis?

• A. GIS manages data integration and analysis; GPS provides location coordinates; RS provides imagery; they complement each other.
• B. GPS manages data integration and analysis; GIS provides imagery; RS provides coordinates.
• C. RS stores, analyzes, and displays spatial data; GPS collects elevation data; GIS provides imagery.
• D. GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems and is used only for visualization.

Answer: (A)

In geographic analysis, three technologies play different, complementary roles: GPS provides precise location coordinates (and timing), remote sensing supplies imagery and spectral data about the Earth's surface, and GIS is the toolset that stores, manages, analyzes, and displays spatial data. The best statement captures this division: GIS handles data integration and analysis, GPS provides location coordinates, and remote sensing offers imagery. Because they offer distinct inputs—where things are, what the land looks like from above, and how to connect and analyze those data in a unified framework—they work together to enable more powerful geographic insights.

Other options mix up the roles: GPS does not manage data integration and analysis—that’s GIS; remote sensing is the source of imagery and spectral information rather than the sole data manager; GIS is not just for visualization, it also stores, analyzes, and models spatial information.